Burnout is increasingly prevalent within caring professions. It is characterized by lacking a sense of personal accomplishment, depersonalization, and emotional exhaustion from high-stress work environments (Ram et al., 2023). This is a far-reaching issue, but improvements in access to mental healthcare for caring professionals are minimal. Healthcare workers, first responders, therapists, and caregivers face difficult and potentially traumatizing situations every day in their careers. A study of active-duty healthcare workers showed that 45% of deployed physicians experienced burnout (Ram et al., 2023). High rates of burnout are due to constant exposure to stressful situations and potentially traumatizing stimuli at work. Climbing rates of burnout paired with no intervention or minimal access to services can have detrimental consequences on the individual and the communities these caring professionals serve.
Burnout is a healthcare issue for caring professionals. Clinicians experiencing burnout are at higher risk for health issues, including respiratory issues, cardiovascular disease, severe fatigue, gastrointestinal problems, and shorter life spans (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2019). Studies show a link between burnout, depression, and increased risk of suicidal ideation for caring professionals (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2019). For caring professionals, burnout infiltrates life outside the workplace; family, relationships, hobbies, leisure, and health can all be affected.
Burnout affects the personal lives of caring professionals, but how does clinician burnout affect clients and their communities? Studies show that burnout in caring professions affects the quality of care for patients and clients. A 2010 study of burnout in nurses showed that emotional exhaustion and stress correlated with poor quality of care in medical settings (Poghosyan et al., 2010). Burnout can also lead to errors in the workplace. A study of the connection between burnout and physician error showed that participants who reported emotional exhaustion and depersonalization had a higher prevalence of errors affecting patients (Tawfik et al., 2018). Besides burnout’s effect on job performance, caring professionals working long hours often do not have the time or energy to do outreach and build connections that could uplift the community.
MFTs are no strangers to burnout. High-stress work, expectations of perfection, and personal struggles can lead to emotional exhaustion and compassion fatigue for MFTs. MFTs are part of the medical field, and the work’s added relational and systemic components add an approach that requires increased emotional labor and sensitivity. MFTs and all caring professionals find purpose through healing others. Compassion satisfaction (CS) is a phrase that describes “the sense of enjoyment or fulfillment that comes from one’s work as a helper” (Holden & Jeanfreau, 2021, p. 207). Compassion is a source of strength but can also bring risks; a caring professional who finds fulfillment through helping others will be doubly disappointed if their work does not go to plan. MFTs can utilize personal experiences with burnout to understand how to support caring professionals best.
The systemic approach MFTs take makes them uniquely qualified to work with caring professionals in managing their burnout. MFTs consider clients in the context of the system they are a part of, whether in a relationship, community, or workplace. When MFTs treat caring professionals, honoring the individual and recognizing the workplace system clients inhabit will allow MFTs to address the unique complications helpers face. As MFTs advocate for their client’s health and wellness, they can also advocate for caring professionals to receive greater mental healthcare access through community outreach. As part of enacting change that will protect and foster the mental health of caring professionals, MFTs must teach clients coping skills, perform outreach in their communities, and call for early intervention to mitigate the harmful effects of burnout.
Besides burnout’s effect on job performance, caring professionals working long hours often do not have the time or energy to do outreach and build connections that could uplift the community.
Currently, MFTs can incorporate many treatments to help reduce the adverse effects of burnout on people in caring professions. Barrett and Stewart (2021) demonstrated that using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) techniques, such as cognitive diffusion and acceptance of thoughts without attachment, helps decrease burnout symptoms. The study’s participants showed greater psychological flexibility and lower perceived stress after the ACT program (Barrett & Stewart, 2021). Aside from ACT, mindfulness and yoga practices show promising results in preventing or reducing burnout. A 12-week yoga and mindfulness program implemented for healthcare providers resulted in lower levels of emotional exhaustion and depersonalization, reducing burnout (Bhardwaj et al., 2023). ACT, mindfulness, and yoga are a sample of the many interventions that MFTs can use with clients to help mitigate burnout levels. If MFTs can increase access to services for these populations, these interventions can be extremely helpful in reducing burnout.
The focus of outreach should be to raise awareness about burnout, educate workers, give them tools, and provide them options to access services.
MFTs can help expand awareness and access to services by going out into the community and doing outreach. Many people in caring professions may not be aware of the benefits they could receive from therapy or are unaware of how to get connected to services. MFTs can provide training to help workers figure out how to access services that are right for them. Training can include psychoeducation surrounding burnout and how it can be prevented or reduced, as well as teaching new techniques that these caring professionals can utilize if they cannot or do not want to see a therapist. Going into the workplace and teaching strategies such as mindfulness can significantly help workers manage burnout when there is no immediate access to resources. The focus of outreach should be to raise awareness about burnout, educate workers, give them tools, and provide them options to access services.
Providing mental healthcare for caring professionals on the individual and community level is a stepping stone to systemic change. Systemically, early intervention for caring professionals can lead to lower rates of burnout and increased resilience and mental well-being. Think of a Community Mental Health Center where caseloads are high and resources are lacking. Clinicians expend their efforts to support clients in any way possible, which leaves little space for themselves. Imagine if clinicians were provided with mental healthcare access before beginning their job, rather than waiting until the burnout has negatively impacted their mental and physical health. Implementing early intervention programs in hospitals, fire stations, and community clinics could catalyze a nationwide shift towards preventative care and recognition of the importance of mental well-being. Workplaces providing employees with mental health professionals, support groups, and psychoeducation workshops can fully integrate mental health into the caring professional field rather than being an afterthought.
The only way for early interventions for caring professionals to succeed is to make resources easy and accessible. Telehealth is a way to provide more access to care, especially for caring professionals who have less time to commute to in-person therapy sessions. App-based telehealth programs were proven effective in a 2023 Intensive Care Unit (ICU) workers’ pilot program (Shah et al., 2023). The app utilized an assessment tool for weekly mental health check-ins. The pilot program results revealed that the ICU workers who engaged weekly with the app were more likely to seek mental health services from clinicians (Shah et al., 2023). Enacting systemic change in caring professions must start with achievable and measurable goals. By keeping self-care simple and accessible, more caring professionals can utilize resources that positively impact their mental health.
Burnout in caring professions is an epidemic that has only been heightened since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Caseloads are larger, resources and funding are lacking, and communities need more help than ever. MFTs can transform the mental well-being of caring professionals on the individual and community levels. The effort MFTs put towards tending to our first responders, physicians, and mental healthcare workers will catalyze a systemic change that puts the needs of caring professionals first.
MFTs can be changemakers in their communities, but the system will not change unless MFTs manage their self-care. Treating the community means treating ourselves with the same tenderness MFTs give their clients. If caring professionals are healthy, then clients are better off. The complicated world has hope through caring professionals who want to make change and do good for their communities. MFTs must uplift and educate caring professionals who put all their energy and passion into making the world better for all.
Julie Payne, DMFT, LMFT, is an AAMFT Professional member holding the Clinical Fellow and Approved Supervisor designations and a Clinical Assistant Professor at Chapman University in the Marriage and Family Therapy Program. She has over 17 years of clinical experience working in community-based mental health and private practice settings. Dr. Payne is currently licensed and practicing in California and Texas specializing in working with families and individuals living with chronic illness/pain, military families, children and adolescents, and trauma.
Alison Vartanian, MFTT, is an MFT student in her third year at Chapman University. She aspires to work with people who experience trauma such as first responders, victims of crime, and complex trauma.
Julia Sampson, MFTT, is an MFT student in her third year at Chapman University. In the future, Julia wants to work with the LGBTQIA+ population, couples, and caregivers, which inspired this article.
Barrett, K., & Stewart, I. (2021). A preliminary comparison of the efficacy of online Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) stress management interventions for social and healthcare workers. Health & Social Care in the Community, 29(1), 113–126. https://doi.org/10.1111/hsc.13074
Bhardwaj, P., Pathania, M., Bahurupi, Y., Kanchibhotla, D., Harsora, P., & Rathaur, V. K. (2023). Efficacy of mHealth aided 12-week meditation and breath intervention on change in burnout and professional quality of life among health care providers of a tertiary care hospital in north India: a randomized waitlist-controlled trial. Frontiers in Public Health, 11, 1258330. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2023.1258330
Holden, C. L., & Jeanfreau, M. M. (2023). Are perfectionistic standards associated with burnout? Multidimensional perfectionism and compassion experiences among professional MFTs. Contemporary Family Therapy: An International Journal, 45(2), 207–217. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10591-021-09605-6
National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2019). Taking action against clinician burnout: A systems approach to professional well-being. The National Academies Press.
Poghosyan, L., Clarke, S. P., Finlayson, M., & Aiken, L. H. (2010). Nurse burnout and quality of care: cross-national investigation in six countries. Research in Nursing & Health, 33(4), 288–298. https://doi.org/10.1002/nur.20383
Ram, V., Bhakta, J. P., Roesch, S., & Millegan, J. (2023). Reducing stress and burnout in military healthcare professionals through mind–body medicine: A pilot program. Military Medicine, 188(5–6), e1140–e1149. https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usab389
Shah, N., Goodwin, A.J., Verdin, R., Clark, J.T., Rheingold, A.A., Ruggiero, K.J., Simpson, A.N., & Ford, D.W. (2023). Evaluation of a telehealth-enabled pilot program to address intensive care unit health care worker mental health distress. Telemedicine Reports, 4(1), 249–258. https://doi.org/10.1089/TMR.2023.0030
Tawfik, D. S., Profit, J., Morgenthaler, T. I., Satele, D. V., Sinsky, C. A., Dyrbye, L. N., Tutty, M. A., West, C. P., & Shanafelt, T. D. (2018). Physician burnout, well-being, and work unit safety grades in relationship to reported medical errors. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 93(11), 1571–1580. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocp.2018.05.014
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